1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to fluid storage and dispensing, and more particularly, to storage and dispensing of drinking fluid in fluid dispensers.
2. Description of the Related Art
Consumers prefer drinking purified water free of contaminants. Various products are available in the market to satisfy this demand. Bottled-water coolers are common and popular in offices or homes to serve small groups of users. In a typical bottled-water cooler, a refillable bottle filled with purified water is invertedly placed atop a cooler station. The cooler station includes a tank reservoir having at least one spigot. The bottle and the tank reservoir are in fluid communication with each other. When an user turns on the spigot, water flows out of the tank reservoir which in turn withdraws water from the bottle. Bottled-water coolers as mentioned above have certain consumer appeals. Among other things, the aesthetic display of a bottle of crystal-clear water is a key attractive feature. The body of clear water inside the transparent bottle visually conveys the perception of cleanliness and freshness, thereby favorably influencing the user psychologically even before any water is consumed.
However, there are various inconveniences associated with such bottled-water coolers. First, when all the water inside the bottle is consumed, the bottle needs to be replaced. Replacing an empty bottle with a filled bottle is quite a strenuous task. More particularly, it requires a person with considerable physical strength to carry and place a filled bottle atop the base. A typical 5-gallon bottle (22.7 liters) filled with water weighs about 50 lbs. (22.7 Kg.). The person performing the replacement has to lift the bottle from the floor. Thereafter, the bottled has to be inverted. In addition, the inverted bottle needs to be accurately placed into the opening of water-cooler's station tank. Mispositioning the bottle onto the station tank can cause water spillage. Furthermore, injuries to the persons performing the replacement are frequent.
To alleviate the aforementioned problems, various schemes have been devised to ease the bottle loading process. One such scheme is to have the water bottle loaded at the base, rather than on the top, of the water-cooler station. A typical system is marketed by Ascent Product Co., of Downey, Calif. as Ascent Back Saver™ in which the water bottle is designed to be loaded below the reservoir tank. In the system of Ascent, the water bottle sits on a base tray inside a cabinet which in turn is located at the lower part of the cooler station. The cabinet has a door with a transparent window allowing the visible display of the bottled-water.
During bottle replacement, the cabinet window is opened. The base tray carrying the bottle is slid outwardly. Then, the consumed bottle is lifted. A new bottle filled with water is then placed onto the base tray. After proper hook-up of the various water conduits, the cabinet door is then closed and the reloaded water-cooler is ready to be used.
In the system of Ascent, there is no need to lift the heavy bottle filled with water during replacement. However, there is still the need for transporting the filled bottle which is heavy. Bottle replacements are frequent because a replacement is required each time water in a bottle is consumed. Furthermore, considerable steps are still needed to reconnect the filled bottle back to normal use. Such reconnection normally requires the service of a trained technician. A nontrained person with unclean hands performing the reconnection may contaminate the water. As such, bottle replacement is not normally performed by a regular user. Rather, a water distributor is called in advance. Thereafter, a trained delivery person delivers a new bottle of water and performs the replacement. Thus, replacing the empty bottle is quite inconvenient and time-consuming, not to mention the cost associated with delivery. Alternatively, bottles filled with water can be stored in advance. However, this option requires storage space. Still, it is necessary to have a trained person to perform the bottle replacement.
There is a need to provide a water cooler having the aesthetic advantages of a conventional bottled-water cooler yet without its associated inconveniences.